Im interested in buying a Tissot Visodate and stumbled upon this vendor via a gumtree advertisement. Its very suspicious but just wanted to see what you guys thought of this. Also if anyone had any suggestion on alternative places that I could get the watch at a great deal.
http://watchseeker.com.au/men-tissot-watches/tissot-visodate…
Thanks everyone
UPDATE 10 August 2017
This discussion refers to experiences in 2013. The domain has since had a new registrant. See comment from current owner.
thanks JLove, a quick google search of his name shows an album of pictures of seemingly fake visodates with plastic wrapping…
http://s1091.photobucket.com/user/joyandstyle/media/DSC02721…
unless someone can shed some light otherwise?
May I suggest you report him to the ACCC
Mate when buying a watch ALWAYS buy from an authorised seller, more likely that it is real and also the warranty will be intact. The Tissot authorised stores are on their site: http://www.tissot.ch/?stores
Following that, just noticed at the bottom you can type the URL of a website. Accordingly for watchseeker it says: "This is not an online shop authorized by Tissot. Therefore Tissot declines all responsibility." (although in trying others it is difficult to find one that works at present - still trying).
Ditto that, NEVER EVER buy watches/designer goods from unauthorized sellers. I would even suggest to only purchase through the company's own website or websites of reputable sellers that actually have physical address that you can visit in case if there are any issues.
I am a bit of a watch tragic and have bought several watches from overseas. I understand the hesitation about potentially buying a fake but if you are careful there are reputable dealers on the net with great prices and great service.
I have bought and sold watches via online watch forums like www.watchuseek.com the forums there would have people that knew where to get a good original deal.
Of the Grey market sellers Jomashop seems to get a good wrap, I've never bought from them before but they sell the visodate http://www.jomashop.com/tissot-visodate-men-watch-t019430160…
Another online grey market dealer with a reasonable reputation on the WUS boards http://www.certifiedwatchstore.com/tissot-t0194301605101-wat…
A reputable international dealer - Amazon.com, in fact the Amazon listing is just another shopfront for one of the 2 I've already mentioned above. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003L2EEGU/ref=s9_simh_se_p…
If you want an awesome deal have a look for a 2nd hand one from somebody with a good online reputation. Have a search for one on www.watchrecon.com
If you want to check out the reputation of a reasonable looking online shop ask on watchuseek or search the threads over there for the shop name and you'll find any posts where someone feels they've been ripped off. I've bought an Omega mail order for about 60% of what they cost retail here in Oz and I bought mine from an authorised dealer with an international warranty. You need to be careful and I would be wary of Gumtree but there are plenty of reputable watch dealers out there on the net.
Dont forget that if you buy from overseas and the watch costs less than $1K you should not have to pay GST on its arrival, additionally if you buy it from the UK you should be able to save 20% VAT on the purchase price.
Experience With www.watchseeker.com.au - THIS IS A WARNING
I bought these 2 watches on the the 28th of June 2013 and the 2nd of July 2013:
Tissot T-Sport PRC200 White Sports Stainless Steel Chronograph Three Sub-dial Watch T17.1.586.32(White Dial)
Tissot T-Sport PRC200 Blue Sports Stainless Steel Chronograph Three Sub-dial Watch T17.1.586.42(Blue Dial)
The reason why I bought the white dial watch in order to give to my Father's 65th Birthday as a present. I received the watch few days later. The watch came with the box, booklet, warranty card, etc. First thing I noticed that the box is poorly made and has got a bit of inconsistencies but I still gave them the benefit of the doubt. So, I purchased another watch with the same model but this time with the blue dial. They told me that the watch is not available and it will take up to 7 days to get it so I said it's ok, I'll wait. I received the package a week later and one thing that I noticed that the package came from Guandong, China via EMS, WTF, isn't most counterfeit/replicas/fake come from this town so I started to research.
I researched and read some forums regarding these watches. I found out that there's alot of counterfeit/fake/replicas especially this particular model plaquing the internet that's why I made my move because that's what my guts/instinct is telling me so I took both watches to a Tissot Authorised Dealer to have it checked for peace of mind.
I was shocked in disbelief when they told me the bad news that it is a counterfeit/fake watch. One obvious thing the watch technician straight away noticed is the alignment/spacing of the mark “SWISS MADE” which he compared it to 3 original merchandise that they're selling with the same model(PRC200), it’s completely different from the original because it’s not properly aligned. Some marks in the dial are not properly aligned too. He also said it is a high end replica because an ordinary person like me who do not have experience with this watches can be easily fooled. He even inspected the box/booklets and he commented that it was poorly made. I was really disappointed because I thought I was buying an authentic watch and one of the watch supposed to be a birthday present for my Father for his 65th birthday and I gave him a counterfeit/fake watch.
I guess I learned my lesson the hard way. I'm writing this so I can warned potential buyers. Stay away from this website, they sell counterfeit/fake/replica merchandise eventhough they say in the website that "All items they sell are authentic"
They have an Australian phone number 02 8970 3792 and an Australian address P.O.Box: 96 Canturbery, 2193, New South Wales, Australia. Have you tried contacting them? They also advertise their registered Australian Business name as JAKARANDA PTY. LTD. I would try and ask them about their product. If the watch comes from China I don't doubt they are fakes but I also know that many high street jewellers, pi55ed off at people buying watches cheaper over the net instead of in their shops are very keen to point out that watches are fakes. I have an Edox that I was told was a fake by a jeweller, he just had a look at it and when he heard I bought it from a grey market seller over the internet he told me he was 90% sure it was a fake. I later took it to a watchmaker and had a dodgy balance wheel in the ETA 2824 automatic movement repaired, the watchmaker that actually opened it up and fixed the auto movement confirmed that it definitely had a swiss movement in it. It was not an expensive enough watch that you would make a fake case and put in a genuine movement, I am sure it is a genuine!
How did you pay? I see they use Moneybookers and they advertise Visa etc. I would check if there is any claimback available through the payment facility. If you paid via Western Union then you probably have only yourself to blame!
They clearly claim on their website that all their products are genuine. If they have an Australian registered URL and phone number I would report them to consumer affairs immediately, if only to get their website taken down and avoid anybody else getting scammed.
Mate, I already contacted them and they're insisting it's genuine and they're only old stocks and overruns. Even if it's old stock or new stocks, I believed that the workmanship should be the same. By the way, I paid $249.95 + $14 shipping each watches. One thing ironic is, it came with no tags on it and no barcode sticker at the back of the watch and came from Guandong, China. If you look at the box, the embossed white tissot label has got heaps of errors in the printing as if it's splattering. The booklets that came with it has some glue marks as if they over glue it and it's sticking near the area where it was bind. Alot of leftover glues on both booklets.
A swiss made watch supposed to have no imperfections/flaws like that especially alignments, spacings and fonts because I also own a Raymond Weil W1 Swiss Made watch and hasn't got any imperfections/flaws like that. Being a swiss made, it supposed to be well made.
One thing dodgy is, I'm asking a physical address and a name who will received it so that I can send back the 2 watches, they couldn't provide one and they're insisting to send it back to their PO Box. I'm planning to send it back via courier so that it's trackable but couriers doesn't deliver to PO Boxes. I don't know why are they so worried to give a physical address and name unless they're hiding something or they're really dodgy. I'm still waiting for the address and name
Lucky, I paid via PayPal and I already escalated it into a claim. I'll post some pictures of the watch and box later so you'll understand what I meant.
This seems to be their photobucket profile http://s1091.photobucket.com/user/joyandstyle/profile/
showing their range of fake stuff. No scammer would tell you their personal details- including address and name.
unlockoz, any update on this? Do you still have the watch, or have you gotten it refunded?
I have posted this in http://forums.watchuseek.com/f71/my-new-tissot-894221-3.html and I will now re-post this here.
In short, www.watchseeker.com.au only sells counterfeit items. I will copy and paste what I wrote in the other forum here.
Sorry Aussie guy I don't mean to rain in on your parade but what Sampoerna said about your watch is indeed true. Its definitely fake. I myself have bought a watch from watchseeker.com.au which arrived yesterday, and upon stumbling across your post, I am not usually one for saying much in forums - but as a fellow Aussie myself, I would like to prevent ANYONE from being scammed by these chinese scam artists.
I bought an Armani AR0478 watch from them for a good price of around $191 including delivery. However, upon receiving the item yesterday, I immediately realised it was a fake. I will upload photos here to compare a real emporio armani and the fake one I received to give you the truth once and for all.
Its so funny because I speak fluent mandarin and eventually upon speaking with "Edmon Su" the owner, I cornered him, confronted him over the phone and eventually he did admit that he sold fakes. He even offered for me to keep the watch, and he would give me a full refund as long as I didn't report him to the Australian Police and/or the ACC.
Although the process of getting him to admit wasn't easy, I can tell you through due diligence I cracked him open. I myself as a Chinese-Australian, have been to China many times and I can tell you there are probably more fake watches in China than there are people. A fake of the quality I received wouldn't be worth more than $40 Australian Dollars.
He did try to defend himself and state that since I hadn't opened the watch, how could I be so sure?
I obviously have all the reasons as you will see in my attached photos.
He then went to proceed by saying I should get a jeweller to open the watch and prove that it indeed has japanese movement. I said to him that yes - It might well have Japanese movement, but I guarantee you it isn't the identical movement that Emporio Armani watches use (from memory being a Citizen movement) whilst most fakes use the Seiko movement (correct me if I'm wrong)
That was the last port of call from him, and I could hear him whispering in mandarin saying "his going to call the police"
then I shocked him by speaking mandarin to him - he couldn't take it anymore from there and just literally broke down to my conditions.
I would keep the watch, I wouldn't call the police, I would receive a full refund into my bank account in the next few days. He even thanked me for taking mercy on him and not going to the police. I told him he should sell his business to me for a $1 and I bet I could source higher quality fakes from a chinese factory. I frequent China quite a lot, and have much experience with fake watches - having bought a couple myself back in the day in high school when I couldn't afford a quality one. All of the watchseeker staff are trained to tell you that there maybe a problem with their supplier - and that the blame is on them. However I can assure you that they indeed KNOW they are selling counterfeits and this is their dirty way of running a profit on us. At $190 including postage for an Emporio watch - he would easily make $150 off one sale.
I am very tempted to report him to the ACC and/or scamwatch, but if that were to happen would like a few fellow other buyers from watchseeker.com.au to join me in the process.
Anyway, enough talk - you guys want the proof, here is a series of images I have uploaded and you can view them at your discretion. I have used another real Emporio as reference.
Sorry Aussieguy - I would suggest you get them to give you a full refund just like I have and keep the watch as well. If you are still doubting me, take it to a Tissot dealer and see for yourself.
As for the images - a few quick notes.
Boxes aren't consistent, Boxes made with different material. Fake box without a cover, bad workmanship on the boxes, watch face is made poorly, crocodile leather isn't crocodile leather, forgot to take a photo of the watch back, but there is terrible workmanship on the back. etc etc etc. I could go on literally for days, but I do hope you get whatever reimbursement your looking for, I do sincerely hope any watchuseek users steer clear of this website.
http://postimg.org/gallery/bz2f7066/ this is a link of all the images I took on my phone.
I bought a Tissot Visodate Heritage from this lot a month ago - having not done my online homework as I should have done - and indeed it is fake: the movement is not an ETA movement used by Tissot (and indeed may not be a genuine ETA movement at all). I'm currently in the process of trying to get my money back. I would stay very clear of watchseeker.
Yep, totally dodgy watch seller. I had never bothered to order a watch online before because of all the scam sites out there but found that this was the only local site that had what I wanted on it. I ordered a Limited Edition Diesel brand Batman watch for my son's 21st after he fell in love with my brother's legitimate one. I got onto their online chat 3 times to double check all the details of the watch. They outright lied - the watch they sent me was a Malaysian knock off, easily identifiable as a counterfeit due to the use of the wrong colour LEDs, different moulding on strap and case, different detail of the etching on the rear cover and of course, fake box and warranty information. 'Caveat Emptor' be damned - I have given them 5 days to send back my money or the ACC gets a call and a hotmail along with Canterbury-Hurlstone Park police…heck, I'd join in a class action to get rid of these clowns. It's not really about the money (watch was only a couple of hundred bucks), it is about the principle.
I just purchased a watch from watchseeker.com.au, and was sent a fake.
Details of my experiance below, would recomend that everyone either steer clear of them or get your watch checked if you have already purchased.
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f62/fake-tissot-watchseeker-les…
Hi all,
I hate to revive an old thread.
However, I have recently purchased the domain name and also commissioned a logo for my new business venture. As you can tell from our business model and if you compare the details of the posts from 2013 to the whois details from now - we are an entirely different business with no affiliation to what has happened in the past.
In fact we are not even your standard e-shop store, but a tailored concierge service.
This is my personal account to add a bit of flavour to this post rather than posting on a brand new/unknown ozbargain account for the business.
Thanks,
New owner of watchseeker.com.au domain
After all the posts, I won't bother going to the watchseeker site even if Associated billbro says it's got a new owner. It's reputation has been tainted and should be totally banned and removed for having scammed people. Any other sites that offers discounted genuine watches or should I just go to Angus and Coote for my Christmas shopping???
Hi Cecil,
It's interesting that you joined on the 18/11/2017 and only made a single post on the 19/11/2017.
Nevertheless, a somewhat late reply below.
You will note from our website that we offer a service rather than a set of watches to buy.
I would also advise caution about shopping for "discounted genuine watches" in general if you are looking to buy them off a website - most distributors for 'high-end' watches don't allow online sales with some exceptions.
Depending on what you are after, I personally wouldn't be looking at Angus and Coote - but I think the vendor selection is somewhat brand dependant.
Feel free to drop me a line via the contact form on the website - our services are currently free and depending on what you are after we can hopefully assist.
That information doesnt really matter if he's stating something that he and many others would believe.
There's little value in that domain itself once the damage is already done.
Tony while I agree that providing information may not necessarily change peoples' perceptions, are you proposing I'm better off not providing any context? I decided to purchase the domain awhile ago now and have IP invested into the brand (for better or worse) and built a number of partnerships - I don't see how providing a response would be harmful.
However, much like is often the case for someone new to something (like buying their first watch or starting a side hustle) - I rushed headlong into it with a lot of gutso and passion and went with the domain, as the name resonated. In retrospect, I may have done things differently, but at least for now, all I'm seeking to do is provide some context.
Also, we aren't really focused on organic leads via inbound web traffic at this stage (while great) we are happy to work with the small number of assignments from referrals where have been fortunate to receive.
Looks a little dodgy.
http://www.whois.com/whois/watchseeker.com.au
http://abr.business.gov.au/SearchByAbn.aspx?SearchText=53824…
Not registered for GST too?